Federal trial set in case against Tyson Foods

A January 2011 federal trial is set for a class-action lawsuit filed against Tyson Foods by Nebraska workers who argue they weren''t paid for prep work, according to the Associated Press. Former and current hourly employees at Tyson''s processing plant in Lexington say they weren''t paid for time spent sanitizing equipment, dressing in protective gear and gathering tools to do their jobs, among other activities. The lawsuit filed in 2006 says Tyson pays workers for four minutes a day for such activities, although employees spend more than 30 minutes a day completing them. It also says the compensation issue has likely affected more than 2,000 employees going back to 2001. The Springdale, Ark.-based company denies violating labor laws or willfully denying wages to employees.